This invention relates to a support for maintaining a wearer's foot at approximately a right angle with the wearer's leg.
Many people suffer from an inability to independently maintain a foot in a neutral position, i.e., at approximately a right angle with the leg. This malady can be caused by damage to the peroneal nerve, which normally controls the muscles which allow the neutral position to be maintained. The peroneal nerve can fail to function properly due to congenital defects, illnesses such as polio, or accidents which result in a stretching or tearing of the nerve. The malady can also result from muscular dysfunction or atrophy, such as that occasioned by extended confinement to a horizontal, bedridden position. Regardless of the cause, these individuals are unable to maintain their foot in a neutral position against the force of gravity, and are said to suffer from "foot drop" or "toe drop".
Numerous attempts have been made in the past to satisfactorily provide support for patients suffering from this malady. Braces have been employed which extend from the foot to an area just below the knee, but such devices suffer from the fact that they greatly restrict the user's movement, are cumbersome, heavy, conspicuous and uncomfortable. Other devices have resembled a posterior splint made from plastic and having a high calf-engaging upper portion, a narrow heel-engaging portion and an integral foot-engaging lower portion, wherein the splint approximates a right angle. The splint is not connected to a shoe, but the user instead typically wears the splint inside or outside of a sock and places the splint in a shoe. This arrangement suffers from a sliding action not only between the support and the wearer's foot, but also between the shoe and the support. This deficiency can become a very significant problem when the shoe is worn when the wearer undergoes vigorous activity, such as when playing basketball, jogging, or walking briskly. Other alternatives for athletes suffering from foot drop have included the taping of the leg and foot adjacent to the ankle to thus lock the ankle into a desired position. A problem with this technique has included discomfort, interruption of circulation, and inability to effectively retain the foot in a neutral position.
Thus, it can be seen that there is a need in the art for a support for maintaining a wearer's foot at approximately a right angle with the leg, such that the support is comfortable to wear, unrestrictive of the wearer's movements, compact in size, and conducive to sureness of footing.